[Ansteorra] Cookies and merit badges

[Chris Zakes]

At 02:09 PM 5/23/2006, you wrote:

>On 5/23/06, Chiara Francesca <<mailto:chiara at io.com>chiara at io.com> wrote:
>I would like to ask a question in addition to that as it has puzzled
>me every since I joined and heard someone say it out loud while we
>were all in court.
>
>Why is it believed that if you merchant your craft you will never
>see a peerage?
>
>Great questions!
>Chiara

>I would also like to know the answer to this.  I love to sew and one of 
>the merchants sells some of my extra clothing.  Does this mean that I 
>can't receive an award for my sewing?
>
>Will the merchant never receive an award for his sewing and work?
>
>Thanks for any answers,
>Racheal


I wouldn't say that a merchant will *never* receive SCA awards for their 
work, because I know of a number who have--Master Iolo for his crossbows, 
Master Peter of the Golden Isles and Master Connor McCinneide for their 
armor-making, etc.

I suppose that part of the negative perception is because on the one hand, 
merchants are doing it for money, rather than for "love of the art", and on 
the other hand, merchants are perceived as having some sort of an advantage 
because they're (presumably) doing it full-time rather than as a hobby.

Another difficulty is that if someone is a merchant, they may not be as 
visible as an artisan who just does it "for fun". A merchant has to spend 
most of his time in his booth, rather than, for example, entering or 
judging A&S competitions and if Merchants' Row isn't visited by those who 
make the decisions about such awards--i.e. the Crown or Laurels--they may 
not be aware of this person's skill.


Here's the flip side of this question: if someone has learned most of their 
skills outside the SCA--a professional musician, for example--are they 
still deserving of recognition?

         -Tivar Moondragon
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